1841.
Sacred Instructions of the Ta Tsing Emperors.
601
he most particularly patronized, and to whom he allowed large dona- tions, deserted, and found shelter amongst the people. On the other hand numbers of vagabonds, the refuse of society, repaired to the banners, in order to screen themselves against the crimes they had committed. And notwithstanding all the laws which were enacted to put down these abuses, the military continued deaf to his exhortations. Amongst the vices of his times, both people and officers were addicted to gambling, greatly to the detriment of good manners. Parasites swarined at the court. The very ministers, when engaged in im- portant deliberations, could not keep state secrets, and the people were soon aware of the resolutions that had been taken. All this heterogenous matter, Kanghe embodies in his admonitions, adds there- to his remarks and his threats, earnestly insisting upon a reform. As many parts of the empire had been laid waste during the late war, the emperor published a discourse upon the promotion of agri- culture. When. I,' he says, marched forward with my army, forbade the soldiers to trample upon the fields of the people, and pre- served their harvests.' He examined the capabilities of the soil, compared the produce of various fields, and even went so far, as to count the grain in the ear, in order to form a correct idea of their specific fertility. The locusts repeatedly committed great ravages and destroyed the hopes of the husbandman, whilst drought and inundations occasioned equal or greater calamities.
He suggests remedies for every one of these evils, but proves himself by no means a good political economist, believing that the price of provisions may be regulated by an imperial ordinance.
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These useful admonitions he follows up by an essay on music and rites, the inexhaustible themes of empty heads. Kanghe had heard the music of the west, and was much pleased with its harmony. He kept for a long time a skillful musician from Java, who used to cheer his lonely hours by the soft tones of his flute, and when this Orpheus died he was almost inconsolable. He gave directions that some foreign pieces of music should be introduced, and the whole native system reformed. Whenever he was present, the courtiers paid attention to these mandates, but they detested the innovation, and soon dropped the western airs altogether.
Kanghe is the only monarch of the reigning family, that traveled: through the provinces, in order to investigate the state of affairs with his own eyes. He has left us a volume descriptive of the experience he gained, and the views he entertained respecting these excursions. Fearing that his large train of courtiers might oppress the people,
VOL. X. NO. XI.
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